Vehicle pulls to one side during braking
1. Defective, damaged or oil contaminated disc brake pads or shoes on one side.
2. Excessive wear of brake shoe or pad material or drum/disc on one side. Inspect and correct as necessary.
3. Loose or disconnected front suspension components, inspect and tighten all bolts.
4. Defective drum brake or caliper assembly. Remove the drum or caliper and inspect for a stuck piston or other damage
5. Inadequate lubrication of front brake caliper slide rails. Remove caliper and lubricate slide rails
High Pitched noise when braking
1. Disc brake pads worn out. The noise comes from the wear sensor rubbing against the disc (does not apply to all vehicles) or the actual pad backing plate itself if the material is completely worn away. Replace the pads with new ones immediately. If the pad material has worn completely away, the brake discs should be inspected for damage
2. Missing or damaged brake pad insulators (disc brakes). Replace pad insulators
3. Linings contaminated with dirt or grease. Replace pads or shoes.
4. Incorrect linings. Replace with correct linings.
5. Or you just need to go to the parts store, buy and apply some Disc Brake Pad Squeal Stop by Permatex.
Excessive brake pedal travel
1. Partial brake system failure. Inspect the entire system and correct as required.
2. Insufficient fluid in the master cylinder. Check, add fluid and bleed the system if necessary
3. Rear brakes not adjusting properly. Make a series of starts and stops while the vehicle is in Reverse. If this does not correct the situation, remove the drums and inspect the self-adjusters
Brake pedal feels spongy when pressed
1. Air in the hydraulic lines. Bleed the brake system
2. Faulty flexible hoses. Inspect all system hoses and lines. Replace parts as necessary.
3. Master cylinder mounting bolts/nuts loose.
4. Master cylinder defective
Excessive effort required to stop vehicle
1. Power brake booster not operating properly
2. Excessively worn linings or pads. Inspect and replace if necessary
3. One or more caliper pistons or wheel cylinders seized or sticking. Inspect and rebuild as required
4. Brake linings or pads contaminated with oil or grease. Inspect and replace as required
5. New pads or shoes installed and not yet seated. It will take a while for the new material to seat against the drum (or rotor).
Pedal travels to floor with little or no resistance
1. Little or no fluid in the master cylinder reservoir caused by leaking wheel cylinder(s), leaking caliper piston(s), loose, damaged or disconnected brake lines. Inspect the entire system and correct as necessary.
2. Worn master cylinder seals
Pedal pulsates during application
1. Caliper improperly installed. Remove and inspect
2. Disc or drum defective. Remove and check for excessive lateral and parallelism. Have the disc or drum resurfaced or replace it with a new one. The front rotors can become warped from excessive heat during braking causing the pulsating sensation as the brake pads hit the high spots in the warped rotor.
Brake stuck / dragging
1. May be caused from a collapsed brake hose that’s not allowing the fluid to leave the caliper.
2. Defective or damaged brake caliper. Caliper may not be sliding due to damage or stuck slide pins.